Ad hoc service provider's ability to provide service for a wireless network

• US 9,398,453 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2007
• Issued: 07/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Krishnaswamy, Dilip, Suri, Atul
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Brian D
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TOAN D
• Application Number:
  US11/861,279
• Publication Number:
  US 20090046591A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,219 Days
• Field of Search: 370/252, 370/311, 370/331, 370/338, 370/350, 370/392, 370/469, 370/235, 455/518, 455/406, 455/550.1, 455/436, 455/445, 455/525, 455/552.1, 725/123
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/029 Firewall traversal, e.g. tunnelling or, creating pinholes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/062 Pre-authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/069 using certificates or pre-shared keys
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

An ad hoc service provider for a wireless network, a method for providing service from a mobile node, and a machine-readable medium are disclosed. An ad hoc service provider includes a processing system configured to support first and second wireless access protocols and to alter the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s ability to provide service for a wireless network in response to a resource related event. A method includes sending a request that a mobile node be allowed to provide service as an ad hoc service provider, detecting a resource related event of the mobile node for a wireless network, and altering the mobile node'"'"'s ability to provide service for the wireless network. A machine-readable medium includes instructions for detecting a resource related event of a mobile node, and altering the mobile node'"'"'s ability to provide service as an ad hoc service provider for a wireless network based on the detection.

Claims

1. An ad hoc service provider for a wireless network, comprising:

a processing system configured to support a tunnel between a server and one or more mobile clients in the wireless network to provide the one or more mobile clients with access to a remote network, the processing system being configured to detect a resource related event resulting from a change in resource capability within the ad hoc service provider by determining that an available power of the ad hoc service provider has fallen below a predetermined threshold, the processing system being further configured to alter the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s ability to provide service for the wireless network in response to detecting at the ad hoc service provider the resource related event by handing off at least one of the mobile clients to one or more other ad hoc service providers, wherein handing off the at least one of the mobile clients comprises notifying the server that the ad hoc service provider must hand off the at least one of the mobile clients.

2. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein to alter the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s ability, the processing system is configured to disallow admission of any new mobile clients into the wireless network, in response to the resource related event.

3. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein to alter the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s ability, the processing system is configured to terminate the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s service being provided to some or all of the one or more mobile clients currently connected to the ad hoc service provider, in response to the resource related event.

4. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein the processing system is configured to alter one or more attributes of the service provided by the ad hoc service provider, in response to the resource related event.

5. The ad hoc service provider of claim 4, wherein the one or more attributes comprises a data rate of the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s service.

6. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein to alter the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s ability, the processing system is configured to notify the server and each of some or all of the one or more mobile clients regarding an action in response to the resource related event.

7. The ad hoc service provider of claim 6, wherein the action is one or more of the following:

disallowing admission of any new mobile clients into the wireless network;

terminating the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s service being provided to some or all of the one or more mobile clients;

or altering one or more attributes of the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s service.

8. The ad hoc service provider of claim 7, wherein the one or more attributes comprises a data rate of the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s service or a duration of the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s service.

9. The ad hoc service provider of claim 6, wherein the action that is different for each of the some or all of the one or more mobile clients.

10. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to support a first wireless access protocol with the remote network, and wherein the processing system is further configured to provide service to the wireless network for the one or more mobile clients using a second wireless protocol.

11. The ad hoc service provider of claim 10, wherein the first wireless access protocol is different from the second wireless access protocol.

12. The ad hoc service provider of claim 10, wherein the one or more mobile clients cannot support the first wireless access protocol.

13. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein each of the one or more mobile clients are capable of accessing the remote network when in a coverage region of the remote network only through the server.

14. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein the remote network is a wireless wide area network, wherein the one or more mobile clients are not subscribers to the wide area network, and wherein the processing system is configured to provide the remote clients with access to the wireless wide area network.

15. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein the ad hoc service provider is configured to provide network service to a plurality of mobile clients, and wherein the ad hoc service provider is configured to decrease the duration of service provided to a first mobile client of the plurality of mobile clients by a first amount of time and to decrease the duration of service provided to a second mobile client of the plurality of mobile clients by a second amount time responsive to detecting the resource related event.

16. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to alter the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s ability to provide service for the wireless network in response to detecting at the ad hoc service provider the resource related event by decreasing a duration of service provided to at least one of the one or more mobile clients.

17. The ad hoc service provider of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to pre-authenticate the at least one of the mobile clients with the one or more other ad hoc service providers by routing authentication messages to and from the server, and wherein handing off each of the at least one of the mobile clients to one or more other ad hoc service providers comprises handing off the at least one of the mobile clients to an ad hoc service provider for which the mobile client has been pre-authenticated.

18. An ad hoc service provider for a wireless network, comprising:

means for supporting a tunnel between a server and one or more mobile clients in the wireless network to provide the one or more mobile clients with access to a remote network;

means for detecting at the mobile node detect a resource related event resulting from a change in resource capability within the ad hoc service provider by determining that an available power of the ad hoc service provider has fallen below a predetermined threshold; and

means for altering the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s ability to provide service for the wireless network in response to detecting at the ad hoc service provider the resource related event by handing off at least one of the mobile clients to one or more other ad hoc service providers wherein handing off the at least one of the mobile clients comprises notifying the server that the ad hoc service provider must hand off the at least one of the mobile clients.

19. The ad hoc service provider of claim 18, wherein the means for altering is configured to perform one or more of the following:

disallowing admission of any new mobile clients into the wireless network, in response to the resource related event;

terminating the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s service being provided to some or all of the one or more mobile clients, in response to the resource related event;

altering one or more attributes of the ad hoc service provider'"'"'s service, in response to the resource related event;

or notifying some or all of the one or more mobile clients and the server regarding an action in response to the resource related event.

20. A method of providing service from a mobile node for a wireless network, comprising:

supporting from the mobile node a tunnel between a server and one or more mobile clients in the wireless network to provide the one or more mobile clients with access to a remote network;

detecting at the mobile node a resource related event resulting from a change in resource capability within the mobile node for the wireless network by determining that an available power of the ad hoc service provider has fallen below a predetermined threshold; and

altering the mobile node'"'"'s ability to provide service for the wireless network in response to the resource related event by handing off at least one of the mobile clients to one or more other ad hoc service providers, wherein handing off the at least one of the mobile clients comprises notifying the server that the ad hoc service provider must hand off the at least one of the mobile clients.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the mobile node is configured to support a first wireless access protocol, and wherein the mobile node is further configured to provide service to the wireless network for the one or more mobile clients using a second wireless access protocol.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the altering comprises one or more of the following steps:

not admitting any new mobile clients into the wireless network, in response to detecting the resource related event;

terminating the mobile node'"'"'s service being provided to some or all of the one or more mobile clients, in response to the resource related event;

altering one or more attributes of the mobile node service, in response to the resource related event;

or notifying some or all of the one or more mobile clients and the server regarding an action in response to the resource related event.

23. The method of claim 20, further comprising sending a request to the server that the mobile node be allowed to provide service as an ad hoc service provider.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the sending a request comprises sending the request that the mobile node be allowed to provide service as the ad hoc service provider for the wireless network within a geographic location.

25. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

requesting registration of the mobile node with the server, the request including the mobile node desire to provide a wireless access point to the one or more mobile clients,

wherein the one or more mobile clients are registered with the server, and wherein the altering comprises altering the mobile node'"'"'s ability to provide service to some or all of the one or more mobile clients.

26. A non-transitory machine-readable medium comprising instructions executable by a one or more processors in a processing system of a mobile node, the instructions comprising code for:

supporting from the mobile node a tunnel between a server and one or more mobile clients in a wireless network to provide the one or more mobile clients with access to a remote network;

detecting at the mobile node a resource related event resulting from a change in resource capability within the mobile node by determining that an available power of the ad hoc service provider has fallen below a predetermined threshold; and

altering the mobile node'"'"'s ability to provide service as an ad hoc service provider for the wireless network based on the detection in response to the resource related event by handing off at least one of the mobile clients to one or more other ad hoc service providers, wherein handing off the at least one of the mobile clients comprises notifying the server that the ad hoc service provider must hand off the at least one of the mobile clients.

27. The machine-readable medium of claim 26, wherein the instructions further comprise code for sending, prior to detecting the resource related event, a request that the mobile node be allowed to provide service as an ad hoc service provider for the wireless network.

28. The machine-readable medium of claim 26, wherein the code for altering comprises one or more of the following:

code for not admitting any new mobile clients into the wireless network, in response to detecting the resource related event;

code for terminating the mobile node'"'"'s service being provided to some or all of the one or more mobile clients, in response to the resource related event;

code for altering one or more attributes of the mobile node'"'"'s service, in response to the resource related event;

or code for notifying some or all of the one or more mobile clients and the server regarding an action in response to the resource related event.